Amorous Intention

Nero walked slightly awkwardly along the Dark litchen passage, Fiore's right arms holding him gently as He did his best not to fall facefirst on the hard stone.

Fioremika poked her face out, her big brown eyes looking curiously at Nero who limped along, the long splint running up his calf holding as tightly as the healers had wrapped it "Does your ankle still pain You, Love?" The Petite Huntress asked.

Nero shrugged, trying his best not to put too much weight on his carefully bandaged leg "No not really... that Blue stuff they rubbed on it has made it a little numb." He said, trying to gauge when he foot hit the ground, the lack of sensation making Nero wary of his movements through the tunnels.

"Sphinka's venom. Lethal when consumed or thrust upon with a blade, but a useful numbing balm when crushed with cave mushrooms, by the sovereign's will and a little to drink, your hurt will not bother you during the celebrations." Fiore smiled, noticing Nero looked around furtively. He could feel vibrating, a deep shaking and the sound of a hammering echo "Some kinda big party is going on out there, huh?"

The two followed the tunnels of darkness, the concussive beat of the vibrating pulse becoming harder and clearer with every mismatched step that Nero took towards the surface.

It was not overlong until Nero saw the faint light of the fire's outside, the chill evening air paired with the very audible sound of booming drums, haunting voices and the thundering tremor of a great many far and around.

Above the Valley of Fallgrim, the two emerged, at the tunnel exit, and saw the great bonfires that littered the camp-village. He looked upon the Litchen hoard, at the women and the small number of men, dancing nude under the setting Azure sun that bathed everything in an otherworldly Saphire.

Fiore pulled from a notch on her toolbelt, smiling lightly at Nero before touching tenderly and kissing him even more so. Nero couldn't remember a single worry in the world for those 30 seconds that their lips touched, her mixture of animalistic and calm reminding him unmistakably, of the Cheif Ulsa herself.

Fiore hid her flush from Nero by ditching him, her silvery hair whipping against the air as she brandished what Nero saw was a handheld, polished Mirror that she held up to the flaming torches by the tunnel entrance.

Twisting her wrist in a 4/2 rhythm, the light reflected flashed in a signal towards the great spire, who's top became shadowed with figures, two he recognized as Baj and Ulsa respectfully. suddenly the great Fire above the Tower began to die down, falling and falling until nothing but its smouldering embers flew up towards the Valley's V-shaped edge.

silence swept Fallgrim, no more dancing that shook the landscape, no more drums that rattled the world, all stood still, the painted women's naked breasts no longer jiggling, voices hushed as a warrior with braided red hair called to them all, in her powerful tone.

"HOARD OF FALLGRIM; THE UNTOUCHED VALLEY, HEAR ME!" Baj called once again, her voice echoing deep into the Valley for all to hear "Tonight we mourne our fallen sisters, celebrate their valour and ferocity with the taste of their prey!" Baja cried, the bellowing cry of agreement "We praise the mighty sovereign and dance in his name so that He might take our Hunter's into his great body! delivering them in our ritual of Boom, branding them in the sky, may they transform into one of his burning eyes, watching and guiding out great hoard for all eternity!"

Nero's eyes rested on the base of the Chief's Spire, noticing now the many towering structures that poked out among the Clearing, the bodies of what He figured were the deceased hunters wrapped up like mummies and tied to the structures which were tall and sharp, their head's bright red, glowing Yellow stone that rattled lightly

"Those things down there, the Glowing stone's on them, they are different than the golden one's, what are they?" Nero turned to Fiore who had returned at his side after signalling her sister

"Boom towers!" Fiore exclaimed, looking at Nero with patient but exited eyes "The Golden stones are buzz rock, they zap and shine brightly, so we use them to light our way and load the Rifles that we steal from the Red Devils..." She explained, gesturing down to the bright luminescent stone that shone at the base of each tower "But the Boom stones... oh they are very different, containing within the power of a great storm that if guided can serve a specific purpose. look watch carefully."

Just as she had finished, Nero saw figures spark a wick at each tower, kicking aside the scaffolds that held them before doing something to the 'Boom Stone' the workers around it dashing away as the tower's rattled violently, Nero's eyes widening in relation as he watched Stones below them begin to let out a strange ringing sound a powerful aura surrounding them

_"Rockets!?" Nero thought, leaning in to watch closer as all of the Rockets suddenly shot off, leaping violently from the earth at lightning speed into the dark sky, Nero looking in amazement as they erupted, exploding into colossal clouds of scarlet, azure and gold, fanning out like petals in the blackness, bigger and more beautiful than any firework that he had ever seen "The Ultimate Skyburial, becoming one with the sky." _

"Beautiful." the whisper crept from his lips as the fantasia of colour and sound sang amongst the above, spiralling pools of colour dotting the sky as two left hands tightly gripped Nero's hand

The Warwolf and the Huntress standing silently together, looking up in adoration of the primitive beauty of the cosmic rainbow, Nero's conflict in his draw home and draw to stay in this wondrously terrifying place, even harder to stomach.

She wished that she could spend more time in the water, it was a rare thing to find such a bountiful water source on Marte that wasn't the snows and ice caps to the North, but this wellspring that Griff had submerged herself in was warm as summer and soothing to her mind, if she had no need to breathe then she might have stayed under forever. but she did need to breathe.

She emerged from the water, filling her lungs with the thick vapour around her. She had been in the Cheif's wellspring for hours, bathing, thinking about Nero, thinking about the Empire... Thinking about... It... why? why did It save her?

Brutus had chased her all the way across the Red Sea with its Centurions, the way the battle went in the Eye of Ares where Nero had collided with the world, Brutus could have killed her, The Empress would expect and of course not care if she had given her life to kill Griffin, but instead, the legendary Brutus the Basilisk saved her life, pushed her with its power away from the blast, taking the brunt itself.

It had survived, of course, Nero spoke that name, a name that no one should know, a name that Brutus would never give anyone... but It gave it to Nero, gave him It's Black sword, and that meant something, maybe... maybe... no.

Griff could not get her hopes up, she refused to, the pain of the disappointment was too great, she had to focus on the task at hand.

Griff had to get Nero to civilization, start their plot to topple the poisonous Empire, maybe then... then she could garner hope, until then, The Basilisk was the Enemy.

She was happy to have had the time alone, the Wellspring, it's walls littered with glowing Bolt anchor gems shining beautifully against the thick mist that arose from the warm water. it was incredible how many Anchor Crystals resided in this Valley, they used Bolt Anchors to illuminate hallways for God's sake! Stone traders would sell their souls to get their hands on even one of the stones that these Litchen squandered... although, in their own little ways, they did well for themselves and however primitive they were in comparison to the crimson folk, she was impressed by their ingenuity considering how young they were in comparison to the other Races.

Griffin was about to dress when a pack of vibrating booms shook the Chamber, paired with the sudden movement that she heard coming through the tunnels to the Chamber.

Heart thumping, Griffin's eyes narrowed, body tensing as the Pull Glyph ignited on her skin, Her sword in its sheath flying into her hand, releasing silently as she drew it, standing naked and ready to fight.

The Cheif's daughter, Baj froze in the doorway, seeing Griffin's naked form, Silversword glimmering in the light, it's blade only inches from her face.

Calming some, Griff lowered her blade and smiled slightly, elegantly ducking down to sweep up and drape her cloak around her nudity "Apologies." She said in vain, Baj wasn't any closer to understanding her, though the Crimson haired Litchen Warrior bowed slightly, thrusting out a small bundle of something wrapped in furs silently.

Griff took the bundle, carefully unwrapping them while trying to keep herself covered was slightly challenging but she eventually uncovered the wrappings to find a smooth, azure blue garb, long and shiny like Saphire waves "This is Noble's garb? it's... pretty, where did You get it?"

Baj tilted her head, Griffin rolling her eyes in annoyance as she set the Garb carefully aside "I hate big transfers, they give me a headache but it beats our little game of charades." Griffin stood straight, taking in a deep breath and igniting Animo, her mind blazing as she rushed to collect all the basics, as much as she could fit into one blast of energy.

Baj raised an eyebrow, looking cautious as she saw Griff's arm glow from under her Cloak. The Transfer was fast but heavy, the red bolt of light suddenly cracking out from Griffin's fingertips, zapping the Red-headed warrior right in the forehead, making her reel backwards in panic as the information seeped into her mind.

Griffin closer her left eyes tightly, rubbing her temple as the cloud of pain sparked behind her eyes "Gods I need a drink after that... it's like being skull fucked by a lightning bolt." She muttered grumpily as Baj held up her fists clumsily, blinking her eyes unevenly as she tried to steady herself "Hey... Hey... easy, easy there, just breathe, take a deep breath listen to the sound of my voice." Griff reassured as the Litchen leaned against the wall, rubbing the bridge of her nose and rubbing her dark lips together.

"Bt'ilik Hargos Gojat?" She muttered in a broken dialect, blinking furiously as Griffin smiled weakly

"Listen to my voice, hear the way I speak, You understand what I'm saying?" She spoke slowly and patiently, she understood how disorientating an Animo transfer can be for the first time, she did not expect him to take to Latin as smoothly as Nero did, she lacked his raw talent, not to mention that a Memory Anchor stone is smoother and stronger than a Quick 1 minute zap of part of a language.

Baj took a few deep breaths, standing on wobbly legs before pursing her lips weakly "W-Whaaa.... ttt.... did... you d-d-d..... d-dd.... do?" Griffin smiled at Baj as she struggled to speak in broken Latin, her tongue moving awkwardly when trying to press against the roof of her mouth to make the correct sounds

"I passed on a little of my lingo, You may not be able to say much but You should be able to understand me a little better?" Griffin tipped her head curiously, Baj rubbing the grog from her eyes as she nodded

"Y-Y-... Yes." She managed to say

"Excellent!" Griffin said cheerfully, smiling widely as she picked up the wrapped Noble garb "Alright then, this Garb, where did You get it and why did You give it to me?" Baj flexed her lips awkwardly, mouthing carefully

"S-Stolen, D-Devile, Cargon... Devil c-cargo." Baj corrected, rubbing her head "F-Found, with gons... G-Goo... Gons?"

"You found it with the Marchant Ships that travel over the Red Sea, with the Guns?" Griffin deducted with the information she had, and she guessed correctly, Baj nodding slowly as she tried to continue

"Cheif.... w-winted... wanted... you t-to... dress, well. F-for... the Warwolf." Baj sounded a little clearer now, though Griffin's smiled faded slightly at the prospect of getting dolled up on command... that sort of thing reminded her of home... and she hated home.

"I'll pass on that one thank You," Griff said adamantly, handing Baj back the Wrapped garb swiftly, only to have two right hands grab her just as swiftly.

Griff's eyes became fiery as Baj gripped her arm, the Litchen Warrior not faltering as she pushed the Garb back into Griffin's arms "I-Is, Grift... Gift, to not take, is In-ssusult." Griffin stared for a moment, she could not lose her grip so easily, she was in a foreign land, with foreign customs, so she calmed the rising heat inside and smiled

"very well... If You could turn around?" She asked as politely as possible, the Warrior bowing before turning to grant Griffin her privacy.

The garb was a little tight around her chest, a silken casual gown of Telluvian make, that was clearly built for a younger lady even slimmer and less lean than Griff was, but she managed fine, not bothering to tighten the waist and pulling the soft sleeve on her left arm, adequately covering her Mysterian Marks.

She noticed Baj's Oaken eyes furtively flicker back to her, her youth becoming apparent in her nervous expression despite her size and muscle, Griff hid her smirk _"Not very subtle, but cute non the less." _She thought she'd tease a little, making a point to flash her naked back to the Warrior for a while before Igniting Attrahunt and pulling on the laces that tightened the fabric over her shoulders.

Baj blinked, turning when Griff had gestured that it was fine to do so... but that devilish streak inside was far harder to suppress than her cold rage, and so Griffin smirked further, stretching out her long, shiny leg as she gripped the long skirt, tearing it in the middle and around neatly so that her smooth calves could be seen, paired with carefully unbuttoning the top three buttons of her top so that her cleavage could be clearly seen.

swallowing gently Baj bowed her head, going to turn away only Griff called in her most Seductive voice "Lady Baj." she whispered, her voice venom "Would You perhaps escort me to the Warwolf, I am afraid that I would get lost on my own." Baj's face flushed slightly, her pretty face contrasting her outward strength as Griffin bit her lip, she knew her way around, Griff had made a point to make herself comfortable with navigating the valley in Nero's absence.

"Bajarineh... does not... like, outsiders." She said with a very **** scowl, made worse when Griffin gave her prettiest smile

"A shame, I thought that the Cheif wanted me taken care of during the Celebrations, I did help kill your monster... oh well, all I ask is that My equipment is taken care of. Farewell." Griffin wasn't sure if this method would work on a Litchen, their ways were not her ways, but...

"O-Okay... Bajarineh will take You." The Warrior said, frowning slightly as she marched on, her face burning as Griffin smiled gently, following Baj through the Shadowed tunnel with Amorous intention.